Cubs win over Cards, gain game on Milwaukee

OK, Cubs fans. Try not to bust out laughing at St. Louis’ misfortunes this season.

After all, Cardinals fans didn’t lord it over you about what happened in 2006, did they?

It seems like the Cardinals struck a deal with the devil for last year’s World Series title and are paying dearly for it this season. The Cubs romped over the Cardinals 7-1 in front of a Busch Stadium crowd of 45,316 on Wednesday night, and the North Siders’ own dreams of a World Series title inched a step forward as they gained a game on Milwaukee.

The Cubs (53-46) are now just two games behind the Brewers in the National League Central. The Cardinals (45-52) are nine games back.

Earning the victory was Ted Lilly, who improved to 11-4 and has won seven straight decisions. That’s the most by a Cubs left-handed pitcher since Ken Holtzman won eight in a row in 1969.

Lilly got offensive help from Alfonso Soriano (three hits, including a double and triple), Cliff Floyd (two RBI) and Mike Fontenot (two RBI). He also helped his own cause with an RBI single in the eighth. Lilly has a four-game hitting streak, the longest by a Cubs pitcher since Carlos Zambrano in 2005.

Lilly gave up one run on six hits with three walks and two strikeouts in seven innings. It’s the fifth time in eighth starts he has pitched seven or more innings and allowed just one run.

The last time Lilly suffered a loss was June 5, when he was saddled with a 7-5 setback to Milwaukee at Miller Park. He was kicked out of a June 10 game at Atlanta for throwing at Edgar Renteria in the first inning, but then caught fire, winning seven times in his last eight starts.

With the Cubs leading 2-1 in the fifth, Soriano hit a one-out triple that snapped a string of 16 straight Cubs hits that hadn’t gone for extra-bases. The triple also ignited a four-run rally that put the game out of reach.

The Cubs opened the series with a 4-3 victory over the Cardinals on Tuesday. That win gave them a 14-16 mark in one-run contests. On the surface, that's not impressive, but at one time the Cubs were 4-14 in one-run games so they have won 10 of their last 12.

“When you start winning baseball games, you start to expect to win them,” Cubs manager Lou Piniella said. “We’re winning a lot of close games. The bullpen and the defense have contributed to that. When you win close games like that, you are pitching well and you are catching it. Most of them have been low-scoring games.”

As for life in St. Louis? There is a lot of grumbling among fans and media that the team has given up. Fans booed the Cardinals a few times on Wednesday. Having the Cubs go 4-0 against their team in Busch Stadium is getting tough for Cardinals fans to take.

The Cardinals’ bad karma is spreading throughout the city. The famed St. Louis Arch, which is near Busch Stadium, has electrical problems that will keep one of its two trams out of commission for the next few months. Only half of the anticipated 4,000 visitors daily will get to ride to the top of the Arch.

Adam Wainwright (9-8) took the loss for the Cardinals, snapping his three-game winning streak. He had allowed three runs in 21 innings in that streak, but gave up six runs in five innings against the Cubs.

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